The Fisheries and Aquaculture Advantage
Fostering food security and nutrition,
increasing incomes and empowerment
The Fisheries and Aquaculture Advantage
Fostering food security and nutrition,
increasing incomes and empowerment
Acknowledgements
This review was prepared by the Strategy and Knowledge Department based on project documentation and references, and field visits to Brazil, Cameroon, India, Eritrea and Mozambique.
Prepared by: Soma Chakrabarti, Independent Consultant.
Originator: Richard Abila, Senior Global Technical Specialist, Fisheries and Aquaculture.
Internally reviewed at IFAD by: Hamid Abdouli, Country Programme Manager (Djibouti); Han Ulac Demirag, Country Director (Eritrea); Bernard Hien, recently Country Programme Manager (Cameroon); Elena Mangiafico, Knowledge Management Specialist (Environment, Climate, Gender and Social Inclusion Division); Robson Mutandi, Country Director (Mozambique); Rasha Omar, Country Programme Manager (India); Eric Patrick, Climate Change Adaption Specialist (Environment, Climate, Gender and Social Inclusion Division); Claus Reiner, Country Programme Manager (Brazil); Nicolas Tremblay, Regional Climate and Environment Specialist (Near East, North Africa, Europe and Central Asia Division).
Inputs received from Rahul Antao and Flora Sonkin, Environment, Climate, Gender and Social Inclusion Division; Alessandra Pani, Sustainable Production, Markets and Institutions Division; and Meala Tesfamichael, liaison support and knowledge management consultant.
© 2019 by the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD).
The opinions expressed in this publication are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of IFAD. The designations employed and the presentation of material in this publication do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of IFAD concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries. The designations
“developed” and “developing” countries are intended for statistical convenience and do not necessarily express a judgement about the stage reached by a particular country or area in the development process.
All rights reserved.
Cover photo: ©IFAD/Roger Arnold
ISBN 978-92-9072-952-5 Printed November 2019
Introduction 4
Key challenges 5
IFAD support to fisheries and aquaculture 11
Case studies 20
Brazil: boosting nutritional and economic outcomes 22
Cameroon: aquaculture offers youth a future 26
Djibouti: partnerships to boost sustainable fishing practices 29 Eritrea: expanding options for young people and women 33
India: artificial reefs and insurance innovation 37
Lessons learned and the way forward for IFAD’s engagement in fisheries and
aquaculture 41
Annex 1. References and documents consulted 43
Boxes
Box 1. IFAD-supported social, economic and environmental outcomes through
fisheries and aquaculture 8
Box 2. Small fish ponds promote incomes, nutrition, women’s empowerment
and pro-poor options 10
Box 3. Nutrition-sensitive fish value chains in Indonesia 13 Box 4. Environmentally and economically sustainable livelihoods in Indonesia 17
Tables
Table 1. Impacts on fisheries and aquaculture by climate change effect 7
Table 2. Case study main themes 21
Abbreviations
FAO Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations FReMP Fisheries Resources Management Programme
SIDS small island developing state(s)
Table of contents
Introduction
This report presents selected achievements and lessons from the growing portfolio of fisheries and aquaculture investments supported by the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD). The introduction summarizes key issues and gives an overview of IFAD-supported actions and impacts of working with smallholders in developing countries. In keeping with IFAD’s drive to bring together and strengthen the key mainstreaming themes of climate and the environment, nutrition, gender, youth and indigenous peoples, the introduction touches upon all of them. A number of “witness statements” present the impacts of IFAD-supported engagement in fisheries and aquaculture on the lives of individual smallholders, and five case studies from the ongoing portfolio (Brazil, Cameroon, Djibouti, Eritrea and India) give concrete examples of how IFAD is working to support smallholders. The final section presents some lessons learned from IFAD’s support in the sector and looks ahead to IFAD’s eleventh replenishment period and beyond.
The importance of fisheries and aquaculture
Fisheries (also referred to as “capture fisheries”) and aquaculture are of critical importance for the food, nutrition and employment of millions of people, many of whom struggle to maintain reasonable livelihoods. The significant growth in fisheries and aquaculture production, especially in the past two decades, has enhanced the world’s capacity to consume diverse and nutritious food. Fish and fish products have a crucial role in nutrition and global food security, as they represent a valuable source of nutrients and micronutrients important for diversified and healthy diets.
Moreover, in lower-income countries, the importance of fish is enhanced by the fact
©IFAD/Rahul Antao
that it contains many of the vitamins and minerals required to address some of the most severe and widespread nutritional deficiencies.
In 2015, fish accounted for about 17 per cent of animal protein consumed globally, and provided about 3.2 billion people with almost 20 per cent of their average per capita intake of animal protein. Even small quantities of fish in people’s diet can have a significant positive impact on the nutritional status of poor consumers across the world. Aquaculture now provides around half the fish for direct human consumption and is set to grow further; but capture fisheries continue to make essential contributions to the food and nutrition security of poor people and is often their most important source of fish (Belton and Haraksingh Thilsted, 2018). Since 1961, the annual global growth in fish consumption has been twice as high as population growth, demonstrating that the fisheries sector is crucial for a world without hunger and malnutrition (FAO, 2018a).
Many millions of people around the world also find a source of income in the fisheries and aquaculture sectors, which support the livelihoods of between 10 per cent and 12 per cent of the world’s population (FAO, 2018b). Around 59.6 million people were engaged in the primary sector of capture fisheries and aquaculture in 2016 and it is estimated that nearly 14 per cent of these workers were women (FAO, 2018a).
Key challenges
Despite the undoubted potential of fisheries and aquaculture, the sector faces serious challenges. While aquaculture production is growing rapidly throughout the world, particularly in Asia and Africa, many of the world’s fisheries are at grave risk from human pressures, including overexploitation, pollution and habitat change. Climate change is compounding these pressures, posing very serious challenges and limiting livelihoods opportunities. It is transforming the context in which the world’s fishers and fish farmers live and work, posing a major threat to their livelihoods and the ecosystems, especially reefs, on which they depend. For millennia, small-scale fisheries and fish farmers have drawn on their indigenous knowledge and historical observations to manage seasonal and climate variability, but today the speed and intensity of environmental change is accelerating, outpacing the ability of human and aquatic systems to adapt. In many cases, it is the poorest communities in the poorest countries that are most vulnerable to these changes.
Fisheries depend on the health and natural productivity of the ecosystems on which they are based. They are vulnerable to physical and chemical changes in temperature, salinity, acidity, and water levels and flows (IPCC, 2007; FAO, 2008).
Aquaculture, as practised on a small scale by the rural poor in developing countries, is also heavily dependent on ecosystem services for feed, seed and adequate supplies of clean water, and is often exposed to extreme weather events, which have increased in recent years (IPCC, 2007). Table 1 summarizes some impacts on fisheries and aquaculture of climate change effects.
Small-scale fishers also face many other challenges. For example, customary practices for the allocation and sharing of resource benefits, which may have been in place for generations, have been changed as a result of non-participatory and often centralized fisheries management systems, rapid technology developments and
demographic changes. Small-scale fishing communities also commonly suffer from unequal power relations. In many places, conflicts with large-scale fishing operations are an issue, and there is increasingly high interdependence or competition between small-scale fisheries and other sectors. These other sectors can often have stronger political or economic influence, and they include tourism, aquaculture, agriculture, energy, mining, industry and infrastructure developments. Furthermore, small-scale fishing communities are commonly located in remote areas and tend to have limited or disadvantaged access to markets, and may have poor access to health, education and other social services. Other characteristics include low levels of formal education, existence of ill health and inadequate organizational structures (FAO, 2015). IFAD also finds that limited access to inputs, technologies and processing/marketing skills are holding back the potential of the sector to improve the lives of small-scale fishers.
Without support for more sustainable alternatives, fishers turn to destructive fishing practices, such as dynamite fishing.
Another major problem is the phenomenal amount of litter and plastics that ends up in the sea. An estimated 8 million tons of plastic enters the ocean every year (Jambeck et al., 2015) and around 5 trillion pieces of plastic are afloat on the ocean (Eriksen et al., 2014). This, in turn, ends up in fish and is detrimental to human health.
Gender and youth inequalities in fisheries and aquaculture
Analysed with a gender lens, the men and women in this sector tend to engage in distinct activities that are strongly influenced by their social, cultural and economic contexts. In most regions, fish catching is male-dominated. Ocean-going boats for offshore and deep-sea fishing often have male crews, while in coastal artisanal fishing communities, women often manage smaller boats. Women are mostly responsible for skilled and time-consuming onshore tasks, such as making and mending nets, processing and marketing catches, and providing services to the boats. In western Africa and Asia, as much as 60 per cent of seafood is estimated to be marketed by women, and in many parts of the world they also do a significant amount of shellfish gathering/clam gleaning – an activity that is often under-recognized, or not recognized at all (FAO, 2016). Campaigns such as the “Gender and the Ocean” theme of the 2019 World Oceans Day, and events such as the International Conference of Women in Fisheries in 20181 are helping to highlight women’s contribution in the sector, and the United Nations (FAO) is active in promoting guidelines on gender mainstreaming.
In general, there is less literature on the participation of youth in the sector.
However, there is general consensus that many young people are deterred by perceptions of declining fish catches, physical labour compared with off-farm work, lack of capacity-development opportunities and lack of adequate income in the sector (Erina, n.d.). In particular, the situation of young women is critical as they face more barriers to participation in fisheries and aquaculture, including lack of access to production inputs.
1 See https://unworldoceansday.org/gender-and-ocean.
Table 1. Impacts on fisheries and aquaculture by climate change effect
Climate change effect Impacts Warming of oceans and
other water bodies
Changes in productivity, with an overall increase in fish production at the global level, but declines of up to 40 per cent in the tropics, as fish are forced to migrate to cooler waters.
Localized extinctions where fish cannot migrate, for example, in lake fisheries. Changes in fish migration paths, affecting small- scale fishers who do not have suitable vessels to pursue them.
Thermal stratification of freshwater lakes, particularly in the tropics, reducing nutrient cycling and productivity of fisheries.
Warmer water increases spread of disease, reduces oxygen and increases risk of toxic algal blooms and fish kills, destroying aquaculture production. Widespread destruction of coral reefs, their associated ecosystems and fisheries due to increased temperatures and more frequent coral “bleaching”. For some farmed species, there is potential for increased growth rates, food conversion efficiency and duration of the growing season.
Sea-level rise Inundation and more frequent flood and storm damage in megadeltas, small island developing countries and low-lying coastal areas. Damage to wetlands, mangroves, coastal nursery grounds and fish habitats, and accelerated coastal erosion. Increased salinity of groundwater, higher water tables and drainage problems due to saltwater intrusion, damaging agriculture but increasing area available for brackish water aquaculture.
Ocean acidification A major systemic threat, resulting from the absorption of carbon dioxide, which may be irreversible in terms shorter than millennia. Leads directly to destruction of coral reefs, reduces productivity of shellfish and zooplankton, as they cannot form hard shells, and has run-on impacts throughout the food chain.
There are also potential impacts on fin fish, but this is not fully understood.
Changes in rainfall patterns and evaporation rates
Leads to changes in run-off, water levels, water availability and quality, and sedimentation patterns in inland and coastal water bodies. Changes flood risk, water stress and droughts, and alters ecosystems and habitats and the productivity of fisheries in those habitats.
Increase in extreme weather events and their frequency, location and seasonality
Increased storm damage, destruction of assets and ecosystems such as coral reefs and mangroves, and lost earning opportunities. Small-scale fishers and fish farmers in remote areas often lack access to weather forecasts, lack infrastructure to protect boats and other assets, and lack insurance. Damage to ecosystems affects fish nursery and feeding grounds, and reduces coastal protection. Aquaculture equipment will be damaged and crops lost. Fish escapes increase the risk of disease and parasitic infestation of wild stock, and have an impact on biodiversity.
Source: IFAD, 2015.
IFAD support to fisheries and aquaculture
In the past four decades, IFAD has supported over 100 projects addressing aquatic and/or coastal zone resources, which were implemented in at least 36 IFAD Member States between 1979 and 2017. The total cost was US$3.37 billion, of which IFAD contributed 46.2 per cent, representing 8.1 per cent of all IFAD’s loans and grants approved during that period (IFAD, 2018a). IFAD support has always been guided by the objectives of reducing hunger and malnutrition, and providing a livelihoods source for poor rural people. Today, these approaches are aligned with Sustainable Development Goal 2 (SDG 2) (zero hunger) and especially with Target 2.3: “by 2030, double the agricultural productivity and incomes of small-scale food producers, in particular women, indigenous peoples, family farmers, pastoralists and fishers, including through secure and equal access to land, other productive resources and inputs, knowledge, financial services, markets and opportunities for value addition and non-farm employment”. More recently, environmental and climate change concerns have also taken on greater importance, with investments contributing to SDGs 13 (climate action)2 and 14 (life under water).3 Box 1 summarizes the main social, economic and environmental outcomes promoted by IFAD through investments in fisheries and aquaculture.
2 In particular, target 13.1 to “strengthen resilience and adaptive capacity to climate-related hazards and natural disasters in all countries”.
3 Including targets relating to providing access for small-scale artisanal fishers to marine resources and markets (although IFAD also supports freshwater actions), and increasing economic benefits to poor rural people from the sustainable use of marine resources, including through sustainable management of fisheries, aquaculture and tourism.
Box 1. IFAD-supported social, economic and environmental outcomes through fisheries and aquaculture
IFAD seeks to achieve the following outcomes through investments in fisheries and aquaculture:
• Increase food production (SDG 2).
• Improve nutrition for fishing and fish-farming communities, surrounding communities and extending to the national level (SDG 2).
• Increase incomes and employment opportunities, including for youth and women (SDG 1).
• Improve the health and quality of life in fishing communities.
• Increase national trade and exports of fisheries and aquaculture products.
• Reduce the migration of young fishers to urban areas.
• Provide access to financial services for small-scale fishers and fish farmers (SDGs 1, 2).
• Preserve and strengthen habitats that are important for rejuvenating fish stocks, such as mangroves and coral reefs (SDGs 13, 14).
• Enhance access to knowledge and sustainable fisheries and aquaculture technologies (SDG 14).
• Strengthen policies and institutions for fisheries resource management, tenure and access rights of local people (SDG 14).
• Enhance resilience of coastal communities against climate change and other shocks by incorporating climate change impacts in the design of new fisheries and aquaculture projects (SDG13).
In most contexts, IFAD supports fisheries/aquaculture as part of a broader integrated approach incorporating environmentally friendly and inclusive crop and livestock production. For example, integrated homestead food production is a nutrition-sensitive, pro-poor and women-controlled approach to household food production that includes small fish ponds alongside vegetable and fruit gardens, and backyard livestock-raising. It can enhance poor rural people’s access to a variety of nutritious fresh foods, grown in close proximity to their households and requiring relatively limited human, financial and productive resources. Within the system, the fish pond provides water for the garden and nutrient-rich mud, the garden and home waste feeds the animals and fish, and animal manure feeds the garden and small water plants that fish feed on (IFAD, 2015a). Box 2 presents an example of such an approach in Bangladesh.
Other IFAD-supported projects have a specific focus on the fisheries and aquaculture sector. The Artisanal Fisheries and Aquaculture Project in Angola is one example. Through this project, IFAD is supporting longer-term fisheries governance in order to tackle the challenges of overexploitation through bad fishing practices, destructive gears and increasing human pressure. Implemented in areas with a large number of lakes, the project’s goal is to reduce poverty in artisanal inland fishing and small-scale fish-farming households in target communities. It will improve food security and nutrition among these households while addressing climate change issues that affect the fisheries and aquaculture sectors. The project targets 15,000 people, or about 10,000 fishers and 5,000 processors and small traders. It aims to (i) strengthen institutional capacity (national, provincial, local/extension services); (ii) improve community participation in economic and wider local development processes; (iii) increase the quantity and quality of fish produced and sold on a sustainable basis; and (iv) improve market-related infrastructure.
Since 2004, IFAD has also invested in 17 grants across the world to support the development of fisheries and aquaculture in various ways. Projects range from improving nutrition and sustainable food systems through local food crops and fisheries value chains (Pacific Islands) to improving the technological foundations for sustainable aquaculture (global in scope) and the inclusion of rural youth in poultry and aquaculture value chains (Mali). A recently approved grant (Advancing Technologies and Capacity-Building for Climate-smart Aquaculture) focuses on Egypt, Eritrea and Ethiopia, and aims to further knowledge of technical skills, technologies and good practices that can help IFAD programmes to respond more effectively to climate change and water-related challenges. This grant will support adaptive research, technology transfer and piloting climate-smart aquaculture technologies and good practices. It will also support capacity-building in technologies for national aquaculture research and extension agencies in the targeted countries and produce and disseminate knowledge materials to facilitate learning and uptake of technologies and good practices by farmers.
Box 2. Small fish ponds promote incomes, nutrition, women’s empowerment and pro-poor options
The IFAD-supported small grant for the project titled “Linking Fisheries and Nutrition:
Promoting Innovative Fish Production Technologies in Ponds and Wetlands with Nutrient- Rich Small Fish Species in Bangladesh” was implemented by WorldFish (formerly known as the International Center for Living Aquatic Resources Management). The project ran for 32 months in collaboration with the national and local Departments of Fisheries and Extension of the Government of Bangladesh and was completed in May 2013. The grant targeted small-scale, poor farming households with small ponds and fishers living in the north-western region and the Haor Basins of Bangladesh, covering the sites of two IFAD- supported ongoing loan projects, namely, the Sunamganj Community-Based Resource Management Project and the National Agricultural Technology Project.
The main goal of the grant was to improve household nutrition through increased production and consumption of nutrient-rich fish and to enhance communities’ income. The Bangladeshi diet is dominated by the staple, rice, while vegetables and fish are consumed only in small amounts. Fish in particular is an important source of multiple vitamins, minerals and animal protein but it is not included in complementary feeding of children aged 6 months and above. Surveys show that where small fish is not an adequate part of the diet of poor people, their calcium intake is significantly reduced, as there are no other rich sources of calcium in the diet (e.g. milk).
One of the grant-supported fish production technologies involved the production of carp and the nutrient-rich small fish, mola, in small homestead ponds managed individually by households in Rangpur and Dinajpur, in the north-western part of the country. This component spanned two full seasons of fish harvesting/production. The second technology focused on increasing small fish production in wetlands through improved management practices.
In an integrated approach, the promotion of vegetables (e.g. orange sweet potato, which is rich in vitamin A) grown on pond dykes and in homestead gardens was complemented by a strong awareness-raising and training component that aimed to enhance the consumption of nutrient-rich fish and vegetables and to increase dietary diversity. This component included training in nutrition, awareness-raising and cooking demonstrations; training of trainers; and formation of groups of local women promoters. A gender-sensitive approach was adopted in the selection of the target households; the target group consisted largely of women and children, especially pregnant and lactating women, and women with children aged between 6 and 24 months.
Results showed large increases in nutrient-rich small fish production and a 3.5-fold increase in the number of homestead small ponds. This led to the increased consumption of nutrient-rich fish, in terms of both quantity and frequency, especially among pregnant and lactating women and among children, with complementary feeding of the latter starting from 6 months of age. Greater production also led to an increase in household income, which was mainly used for food purchases, school fees and health-related expenses.
The training of women as community promoters proved to be an effective mechanism in enhancing the production and consumption of nutritious food. This encouraged households not included in the project to adopt small pond aquaculture and production of orange sweet potato, and translated into women’s empowerment, enhanced social status and increased physical mobility.
Source: IFAD, 2015a.
IFAD support in the face of climate and environment challenges By September 2017, a total of 155 Nationally Determined Contributions to address climate change had been submitted to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. Out of these, 87 address fisheries and aquaculture, of which 78 include climate change adaptation measures.4 IFAD is keenly mindful of the need to minimize environmental impacts and greenhouse gas emissions from fisheries and aquaculture activities, and to increase the resilience of fishers and coastal communities as well as the natural resources they depend upon. IFAD’s Social, Environmental and Climate Assessment Procedures (IFAD, 2017) include a guidance statement on interventions including fisheries and aquaculture in order to minimize risks and maximize opportunities for the planet and poor rural people. These include adaptation and mitigation strategies for capture fisheries and aquaculture, and advocate enhancing the capacity of national monitoring systems. IFAD has also invested in research and publications that build on related codes of conduct and voluntary guidelines by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO),5 and offer guidelines and “how to do” practical advice on climate-smart and responsible fisheries and aquaculture (for example IFAD, 2014, 2015).
The Programme to Reduce Vulnerability in Coastal Fishing Areas in Djibouti is an example of how IFAD is addressing climate change adaptation, mitigation and environmental concerns affecting people whose livelihoods depend on fishing.
The project is engaging with communities through participatory natural resource management to restore mangroves and preserve coral reefs, which are vital for fish stocks and help mitigate greenhouse gas emissions.6 Fisheries value chains affected by climate change are also benefiting from renewable energy equipment, ice plants and coolers/insulated containers to improve the conservation of fish products. These are expected to benefit fishers and sellers, many of whom are women.
IFAD is exploring innovative ways to raise awareness globally and to channel financing to help deal with climate-induced threats to fish as food for millions of poor rural people. “Recipes for Change” is a series of recipes from IFAD-supported countries. Here, traditional local foods that are under threat from climate change are the focus of adaptation investments by IFAD’s Adaptation for Smallholder Agriculture Programme (ASAP). Celebrity chefs spotlight fish-based recipes such as smoked fish with sesame and sorrel sauce from Chad, Cambodian curry, Vai Ika (tuna and taro leaves) from Tonga, and sweet and sour catfish soup from Viet Nam. ASAP-supported solutions in Viet Nam, for example, include taking action on increased salinity, which affects fish-farming by poor rural families, and research on saline-tolerant fish varieties.
IFAD recognizes the importance of an integrated ecosystem management approach because what happens on land directly impacts what happens in oceans.
4 Source: www.fao.org/webcast/home/en/item/4781/icode/.
5 Principally refers to (i) Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries, (ii) Voluntary Guidelines for Securing Sustainable Small-Scale Fisheries in the Context of Food Security and Poverty Eradication, and (iii) Voluntary Guidelines on the Responsible Governance of Tenure of Land, Fisheries, and Forests in the Context of National Food Security.
6 A study commissioned by IFAD indicated that the “with project” scenario with regard to emissions for the project was a very modest carbon balance, largely due to the restoration of even a limited area of mangroves. See IFAD (2015b).
The inappropriate use of harmful substances to fertilize and protect crops on land results in harmful chemical run-off into coastal waters. Unsustainable land-based agriculture, therefore, undermines fishers’ options to diversify livelihoods. The marine coastal ecosystems in the small island developing state (SIDS) of Comoros, for example, are vulnerable to these threats; coastal land erosion and silting of fragile lagoons is threatening the productivity of both agriculture and fisheries.
Loss of forest cover increases soil erosion and causes downstream sedimentation, contributing to the loss of critical coastal and marine habitats, such as coral reefs, seagrass beds and mangroves. Dynamite fishing and “reef gleaning”, where fishers break down coral beds to collect invertebrate animals, leave behind fields of dead coral rubble. The Integrated Ecological Planning and Sustainable Land Management in Coastal Ecosystems in the Comoros project supported by IFAD and the Global Environment Facility (GEF) aimed to support longer-term ecological restoration, and better controlled and sustainable agricultural and fishing practices.
It contributed to the restoration of degraded marine sites, improved soil and water conservation practices and helped to stem the disappearance of reefs.
Contributing to better nutrition outcomes
As outlined above, the potential contribution of fisheries and aquaculture to better nutrition outcomes is immense, and the example from Bangladesh shows how integrated homestead production incorporating small fish ponds can make a difference. Today, however, the majority of IFAD-supported projects are related to value chain development that contributes to “inclusive and sustainable rural transformation” (IFAD, 2016) in line with Agenda 2030. IFAD knows that special efforts are needed to make sure that value chain development is indeed inclusive and works for poorer households, women and youth. IFAD has been working in collaboration with the International Food Policy Research Institute and the governments of Canada and Germany to identify entry points to enhance nutrition outcomes along value chains, including fish value chains. Research in Indonesia, for example, has helped to shape IFAD’s corporate guidelines on how to design nutrition-sensitive value chains (IFAD, 2018b). Box 3 presents a summary from Indonesia’s Smallholder Livelihood Development Project.
Supporting women’s and youth empowerment in fisheries and aquaculture
IFAD is committed to SDG 5 on gender equality, and its investments build on FAO guidelines in the sector. In the Philippines, for example, the Fisheries, Coastal Resources and Livelihood Project (FishCORAL), which began in 2016, aims to reduce poverty in the targeted coastal areas by increasing the income of fishing households through livelihood diversification and by supporting coastal households in the adoption of sustainable management of fishery and coastal resources. Specifically, the project targets a 20 per cent increase in the number of women employed in income-generating activities by 2020 and a comprehensive range of actions to empower women.7 Similarly, many IFAD-supported investments
7 See case study in United Nations Environment Programme and Gender and Water Alliance (2019).
Box 3. Nutrition-sensitive fish value chains in Indonesia
In Indonesia’s eastern Maluku and North Maluku provinces, malnutrition levels are high. Nutrition challenges include monotonous diets with inadequate levels of energy, micronutrients and protein.
Studies commissioned by IFAD suggest that strengthened value chains for foods such as bananas, cassava, maize, spinach, sweet potatoes and fish could make business sense for smallholders and lay the foundations for a strong local food system that sustainably delivers nutritious foods for healthy diets. These commodities were selected through a rigorous nutrition lens (see below), considering economic, business, gender, environmental and institutional aspects.
Then the fish value chain was analysed alongside others – the summary is shown below.
Finally, potential interventions from a supply and demand perspective were also identified (below) and recommendations across all value chains are presented.
Source: IFAD, 2018.
Very low
Very high
Vitamins A, B1, B6, B12 Potential
commodity Energy Protein Micronutrients Contributes to further dietary diversity No Fish
Availability Familiarity Processing potential
Very available Very familiar Can be processed (e.g. canned, salted)
Supply
• Various varieties of fresh fish, including tuna; tuna is fished year- round but no cold chain exists
• Catches of anchovies and other fish are apparently declining
• Fishing is the main occupation in many coastal villages – up to 50 per cent of income, mostly from tuna
• Some boats lack motors so must remain in-shore
• Fisherfolk may have limited capacities and lack nets and equipment for some fishing, such as for anchovies
• Federation of fishing groups has links to buyers through company with local presence; purchasers have quality standards; contract fixes prices
• Processed fish also available, including through support by SOLID
• Inland villages access fish via traders but limited supply and higher prices during rainy season
Demand
• Household consumption is mainly of cakalang fish, not tuna
• High market demand; in inland communities demand is for fresh momar
• Lower consumption of anchovies because of lower availability
• Poor families may eat fish once a day
Fish Supply
• Upgrade fishing boats to enable more offshore fishing and so access more and different varieties of sea fish
• Reduce ocean pollution and maintain ecosystems for sustainable fish catches through use of environmentally friendly fishing methods and equipment
Also nutrition value:
• Improve use of by-products and wastes (e.g. to generate fish feed for additional income)
• Develop a cold chain to reduce waste and loss and improve food safety
Demand
• Further develop processed products that can reach new markets, such as a snack product for neighbourhood/
village markets (schools, kiosks, health posts)
Also nutrition value:
• Integrate awareness of nutrition value and preparation into village and national nutrition programmes (also for other commodities)
target youth, such as the Aquaculture Entrepreneurship Promotion Project in Cameroon (see case study).
Fisheries and aquaculture as part of an inclusive and sustainable rural transformation agenda
Today, fisheries and aquaculture play a key role in advancing IFAD’s drive to make inclusive and sustainable rural transformation a reality on the ground. A key strategy for IFAD is to bring together all its mainstreaming themes in an integrated way, so that climate and the environment, nutrition, gender and youth come together in all IFAD-support projects and programmes in a way that maximizes synergies and manages trade-offs.
The recently approved Aquaculture Business Development Programme in Kenya is an example of the new generation of projects that tackles all of these cross-cutting issues together. Smallholder agriculture and livestock production are under mounting pressure in Kenya from shortages of productive land and the negative effects of climate change, particularly on rainfed crops, pastures and livestock. In response, the mass of subsistence farmers on the margins of markets are seeking ways to adjust their mixed farming systems to minimize risks, make the best use of their scarce resources and earn a living. Despite advances in the national economy, a significant proportion of rural people remain in poverty. In this deteriorating rural economic context, aquaculture has been identified as a key diversification strategy.
The US$143.3 million project promotes fish production in an economically and environmentally sustainable manner and will enable more than 35,000 rural households to eat better and earn more money. The rapid and continuing expansion of aquaculture in Kenya offers a major opportunity to alleviate rural poverty and malnutrition, and build climate resilience for poor households. The central idea is to assist large numbers of smallholders in becoming profitable fish producers or village-level providers of related services within a secure value chain framework and, in so doing, to promote a step-change in nutritional well-being in the wider communities. Public and private-sector investments in the aquaculture value chain are to back community-wide initiatives for good nutrition and food security through education and better access to affordable and nutritious foods. Particular attention will be given to water needs and water quality, and the suitability of different agroecological zones for climate-smart aquaculture technologies. Technologies that minimize environmental impacts are given priority, such as recirculating aquaculture systems, which are tank-based systems in which fish can be grown at high density under controlled environmental conditions. They use a closed-loop system that retains and treats the water within the tank. This kind of system uses up to 99 per cent less water than other aquaculture systems, reducing the discharge of waste, the need for antibiotics or chemicals to combat disease, and fish and parasite escapes.
Equity is also a priority: while women are engaged in most areas of fish value chains, men receive a larger share of the benefits; youth unemployment is also very high in rural areas. With this in mind, the project is aiming to slow young people’s outward migration through attractive and remunerative income opportunities, and to ensure a fairer deal for women.
Special focus on small island developing states
Small island developing states (SIDS) are a distinct and diverse group of countries with specific vulnerabilities. Common traits include small size, abundance of marine resources and remoteness. Traditionally, SIDS are highly dependent on fisheries for food and incomes, especially for the poor. Great distances to major import and export markets and high sensitivity to external shocks, particularly food price volatility, further hamper food and nutrition security. These countries are threatened by sea- level rise, coastal erosion and diminished freshwater availability as a consequence of both climate change and overexploitation of natural resources. IFAD has therefore developed a specific approach for its investments in these countries (IFAD, 2014a) where sustainable small-scale fisheries, including aquaculture and mariculture of nutrition-rich fish, and strengthening fish value chains constitute one of the three strategic priorities. For instance, the Mariculture Enterprise Development Project in Maldives aimed to support development of fish value chains, including an export- oriented mariculture industry, improve fishing infrastructure and build the capacity of the Ministry of Fisheries and Marine Resources. IFAD promotes sustainable aquaculture models that create entrepreneurship and employment opportunities for the rural poor and youth, and that are based on the precautionary principle and integrated ecosystem-based approaches. These models include the culture of fish, shellfish and aquatic plants such as seaweed. Environmental education, together with incentives and disincentives at the community level, also helps reconcile food security with environmental sustainability.
Adding value to nutrition-rich fish is another thrust of the IFAD approach in SIDS.
Investment in fisheries has traditionally overlooked high-value and nutrition-rich small fish, which are a source of food and livelihoods for small-scale fishers and make a major contribution to the nutrition of poorer non-fishing households that cannot afford expensive larger fish. IFAD encourages fishers to target small pelagic fish species to reduce pressure on overexploited fisheries and incur lower risks, as smaller species tend to breed faster and earlier in their lives and so recover much faster. In small- scale aquaculture systems, adding micronutrient-rich small fish can have significant impacts on household food and nutrition security. Because of their remoteness, SIDS encounter physical challenges along fish value chains, which IFAD helps to address, for example, through improved fish processing, storage and marketing facilities. IFAD helps small-scale fishers in SIDS obtain higher prices on the market, for example by facilitating access to market information and improving management skills. IFAD encourages a balance between sustainable marine production and business value chain development, and carries out training through community centres to this end. IFAD also emphasizes the empowerment of women’s and youth groups along fish value chains. Finally, IFAD recognizes the importance of promoting alternative livelihoods and reducing dependence on fisheries in the longer term for many poor rural women and men.
Achieving impact at project and corporate level
IFAD-supported interventions are about achieving impact. IFAD has embraced an innovative initiative to assess impact not just at the level of individual projects, but also at the corporate level. IFAD’s Impact Assessment Initiative uses a critical mass
of project-level assessments that rigorously attribute results to actions in order to determine IFAD’s impact at the corporate level. Impact assessment is an approach to evaluate whether observed changes in outcomes among project target groups can be attributed to development projects that goes beyond simply comparing areas with and without projects or comparing indicators before and after projects, which often fails to account for factors that may contribute to observed changes such as economic factors, natural disasters or conflict.
Projects assessed as part of this initiative under IFAD’s tenth replenishment period (IFAD10) include some with a strong focus on fisheries/aquaculture, such as the Coastal Community Development Project in Indonesia, FishCORAL in the Philippines, the Participatory Smallholder Agriculture and Artisanal Fisheries Development Programme in Sao Tome and Principe, and other projects that include a focus on the sector as part of an integrated approach.8 Box 4 presents selected impacts from an in-depth analysis; the key point is that impact assessments will not only inform future project designs in Indonesia and related projects in the region, but they will also feed into a corporate-level assessment.
Impacts for individuals
At the heart of IFAD-supported interventions are people, and staying in touch with impacts felt by individual women and men is central to gaining insights beyond the statistics. While working at scale is key to making every development dollar count, any transformation agenda has to work for individuals – am I able to help my family climb and stay out of poverty? Can I eat better? Will being a woman or young or older hold me back? Can I cope with climate change? These are some of the pressing questions for individuals, and the snapshots below capture some examples of how people’s lives can be changed through fisheries and aquaculture support.
Women’s cooperative leader and entrepreneur, Zeinab Osman, 22 years old.
Zeinab is a shy young woman living in the Northern Red Sea Region in Eritrea. She comes from a family of seven and left school when she reached 10th grade. She was hoping to get a job and help her family, but it was not easy in the small coastal town, where jobs are scarce. Undeterred, she decided to get involved in a cooperative of women established with the support of the Ministry of Marine Resources and IFAD. In preparation, she took part in a month-long training course on mending and making fishing nets.
The project, also expected to be supported by the Global Environment Facility, has a strong focus on ecosystem health, and cooperatives are also engaged in mangrove plantation after efforts to increase awareness of the importance of mangroves for their livelihoods. Within the cooperative of women engaged in net- making, Zeinab found a place where she sees potential to grow in the long run and learn profitable skills. It also offered a social forum for sharing ideas, and helped her to gain confidence in developing business ideas. Within a short time, she was
8 For example, the Agricultural Value Chains Support Project (Senegal) and the Coastal Climate Resilient Infrastructure Project (Bangladesh).
©IFAD/Meala Tesfamichael
Box 4. Environmentally and economically sustainable livelihoods in Indonesia
Project name and dates: Coastal Community Development Project (CCDP), 2012-2017.
Project goal: Reduced poverty and enhanced, sustainable and replicable economic growth among the active poor in coastal and small island communities.
Development objective: Increased household incomes for families involved in fisheries and marine activities in poor coastal and small island communities.
Key issues: Coastal communities, sustainable fisheries, marine ecosystems, sustainable livelihoods.
Financing: IFAD loan and grant, Spanish Food Security Trust Fund, Government of Indonesia, smallholders.
Over half a million coastal community members (503,500) benefited from sustainable livelihoods support, which was designed to help them address the impacts of destructive fishing practices, poor aquaculture management and vulnerability to extreme climatic events – some of the greatest challenges to sustainable development for coastal and small island communities in Indonesia.
Project actions included mangrove replanting, establishing sea protection areas and organized community waste removal.
Household incomes increased by 132 per cent, and 94 per cent of the 1,609 enterprise groups established dealing with capture fishing, aquaculture, processing, marketing, environmental protection and ecotourism are reported to be financially viable, exceeding the planned target of 70 per cent. Many of these enterprise groups are related to the fishing industry, which is critical for local livelihoods. Furthermore, 33 community-based marine resource management areas were demarcated and ratified, 180 community-based coastal resources management groups were engaged in ecotourism activities, and 45 community ecotourism investments supported increased incomes alongside environmental rehabilitation and conservation activities such as mangrove replanting, organized rubbish cleaning and raising awareness of climate change and the negative effects of destructive fishing practices. In addition, seaweed-based product development contributed to carbon sequestration.
The project had a significant impact on food security through increased fish consumption, more income to beneficiaries to purchase other nutritious foods and more fish available in the market. It also reduced post-harvest losses. The number of underweight children decreased by 80 per cent, and while in 2013 over a third of households experienced a first hunger season, at the end of the project this had dropped to 2.2 per cent, while a second hunger season was eliminated. In terms of women’s empowerment, successes include a reduced workload due to improved access to basic infrastructure and services such as water and energy. Thirty per cent of enterprise group members were women (90 per cent for savings groups and 86 per cent for fish-processing groups).
chosen as secretary of the cooperative, giving her the opportunity to learn some management organizational skills. The cooperative is in its early stages but Zeinab is planning to expand it through microcredit schemes so that women can access the basic assets to start profitable activities. Her parents’ support has been important and Zeinab hopes she can be an example to other young girls. Fisheries Resources Management Programme (FreMP), Eritrea.
Aquaculture entrepreneur, Michel Ntomo, 34 years old.
Born into a poor family in Cameroon, Michel abandoned his studies because of a lack of financial means. He began to provide services to fish farmers, in particular the development of ponds. In 2017, he was selected to participate in an IFAD-supported project. He received a start-up kit, training and ongoing technical support, including weekly field visits to follow up on progress, after which he set up his own small farm with two ponds. With the income from his first harvests, he extended his farm to 10 ponds. After just two years he became the owner of a small-scale aquaculture enterprise, which today employs two permanent staff and temporary workers.
The farm produces almost 300 kilograms of fish ready for sale per month. He also grows soya, corn and seeds as fish feed as advised by the project so that he can reduce costs. The project has helped to resolve conflicts over the use of precious water and has put in place a system to allow multiple uses and avoid waste. The income generated by his business, around 500,000 Cameroonian francs a month, means that Michel is now independent. The women who buy his fish for sale in local markets also benefit from a steady supply and good prices. Now Michel can raise a family and send money home to his mother, who needs this for hospital fees when she is sick.
He and his family can now eat fresh fish regularly instead of having to rely on frozen fish from time to time, and he can also afford to buy meat, eggs and other nutritious foods more often. But Michel does not want to stop there, and plans to expand, offering more local employment to others. IFAD grant: Aquaculture Entrepreneurship Promotion Project (PPEA), Cameroon.
Fisher, Palani Arumugam, 52 years old.
Married with three children, Palani catches prawns in the lake and not in the sea because he fishes using a traditional practice called padu. The practice involves dividing the lakes into eight areas. In one area they can catch only for five days a week and the rest of the days he uses the fish and line system. The system involves using two nets: one for the periphery and another smaller one that allows the prawns to move towards the innerlayered nets. For Palani, one of the most significant changes is in how he accesses markets. Palani would accept a fixed price set by middlemen but today, thanks to the project, he sells his prawns to a fish marketing society established by the project, which auctions them rather than giving a fixed price. Before he would sell at 150 rupees a kilogram but today is earning around double.
The project also trained fishers in accessing finance and saving to help them climb out of debt. The Fish Marketing Society helps him to manage his income prudently.
He and his wife no longer have to argue about how to cope with household expenses and she manages her own budget. The innovative and affordable asset insurance he has taken out, brokered by the project, means that he and his family are much less
©IFAD/David Paqui
©IFAD/Rahul Antao
stressed about bad weather; instead of living from day to day they can plan to keep their children in education. Post-Tsunami Sustainable Livelihoods Programme for the Coastal Communities of Tamil Nadu, India.
Fisher and entrepreneur, Userne Herminio, 42 years old.
Userne lives in Zalala, Mozambique, and is in charge of a family of 11, including the children of his brother, who passed away. He has been fishing since he was at school, but he only managed to increase his income after an IFAD-supported project helped him acquire a sturdier boat. He also received a kit with fishing nets and gear, and training in good practices. With the extra income he bought a piece of land and built a house for his children.
He feels that his family nutrition is also improved; he and his wife took part in nutrition capacity-building, and his wife joined a nutrition training group. He explains that he has changed the way they store and cook the fish to make it more nutritious.
Before they used to eat cassava flour, but now they can buy rice, chicken and beef.
The fish they produce in tanks helps them out when the sea is rough. He is also more aware of the environmental dimension and is passing on what he has learned about the conservation of species and environmental protection to his fellow fishers.
He explains that they have an information campaign among fishers. He has been expanding his plans and asking for more cold storage, and can employ young people from time to time. Artisanal Fisheries Promotion Project (ProPESCA), Mozambique.
Fisher and fish processor/vendor, Sawati Silimani, 30 years old.
Sawati is married with four children, and joined a community savings group facilitated by IFAD. She says, “I received two boats which allowed me to become more independent from my husband and to become a fish entrepreneur myself”.
When the weather is not good they can still consume the small dried fish, and the project has been providing training in improved processing techniques. Through the community savings group and extra income from the fishing boats, Sawati was able to become more independent. In a transformation of gender roles, her husband sometimes works for her on her boats, she says, smiling. She is also able to offer employment to 10 young people. Artisanal Fisheries Promotion Project (ProPESCA), Mozambique.
Fisher, Maria de Fátima Mota Barbosa, 58 years old.
Maria de Fátima is also the president of the Association of Fishers of Camalaú, in rural Paraíba State in Brazil’s north-eastern area. Everyone in her family makes a living from fish-farming, and she has developed a technique that is proving a great boost to the livelihoods of her family and others. They used to throw out one of the fish species caught because of its many bones and therefore low market value.
Maria de Fátima and several other women in the community developed a technique to process this type of fish, so that they could sell it for a much greater profit. They now produce fillets from the processed trahira fish, which are proving popular even beyond her region. These fillets fetch 40 Brazilian real (R$) per kilogram compared with just R$6 for the unprocessed fish. Encouraged by this success, they branched into hamburgers, soups and even pâté. “Fish blood runs in my veins … but since we had
©IFAD/lora Sonkin
©IFAD/lora Sonkin
©IFAD/Viviane Ramalho
the idea of adding value to trahiras, we have more options for income”. Cariri and Seridó Sustainable Development Project (PROCASE), Brazil.
Case studies
The following pages present a small selection of IFAD-supported interventions from Brazil, Cameroon, Djibouti, Eritrea and India, covering IFAD’s five regional divisions.
They represent a small part of IFAD’s broader engagement in the sector.
For example, through the Mujeres de la Amazonía cultivan pez nativo para su seguridad alimentaria y comercialización project implemented by Fundación Centro Lianas, an IFAD grant enabled indigenous communities in Ecuador to promote the farming of cachama, a native fish with a good capacity to adapt and low production costs. Kitchwa communities were supported to build ponds for the production of cachama and were strengthened through the organization of training, demonstrations and exchange visits and the distribution of material (e.g. on the construction of ponds, production techniques and natural resource management). This project not only enabled a native Amazonian fish to be recovered through the application of environmentally friendly methodologies that contributed to the conservation of ecosystems, but it also improved food security of the communities by ensuring a sufficient intake of protein for families. In addition, it enabled women to gain surpluses, and 30 per cent of their production was sold in the local market, thus increasing their access to capital and boosting their decision-making power in their communities. An IFAD loan in the same country supported drip irrigation systems, where water can be stored in pools for up to two weeks. The pools where families store their excess water can double as fish nurseries. Trout, carp and tilapia keep the water free of insects and are then sold alongside the crops at the local market. The Buen Vivir in Rural Territories Programme shows the potential of aquaculture as a supplementary livelihoods and nutrition option in this and other regions.
The projects from which the following case studies are drawn focus on the fisheries and aquaculture dimension in different contexts as set out in Table 2. In some cases additional aspects such as nutrition and youth have been integrated as IFAD has reaffirmed corporate commitments in these areas. In Cameroon and Eritrea, fisheries and/or aquaculture are the main focus of IFAD support, whereas in Brazil, Djibouti and India, they are part of a multipronged sustainable livelihoods approach.
While the case studies cannot present the full range of IFAD-supported interventions, they do provide a glimpse of the immense potential that the sector holds to deliver multiple benefits for poor women and men and the environment on which their livelihoods depend.
Table 2. Case study main themes
Brazil Aquaculture and small- scale river capture fisheries
Cameroon
Aquaculture Djibouti Small-scale marine capture fisheries
Eritrea Small-scale marine fisheries and inland aquaculture
India Small-scale marine capture fisheries
Food
production ü ü ü ü ü
Nutrition ü ü ü ü ü
Income
generation ü ü ü ü ü
Fishing community quality of life
ü ü ü ü
Knowledge and technologies
ü ü ü ü ü
Financial
services ü ü ü ü
Reduced youth
migration ü ü ü ü ü
Women’s
empowerment ü ü ü ü ü
Policies and
institutions ü ü
National trade
and exports ü ü ü
Habitats ü ü
Resilience to climate change and shocks
ü ü ü ü
©IFAD/Ednilson Barbosa
Brazil: boosting nutritional and economic outcomes
Key facts
Project name Rural Business for Small Producers Dom Távora Project
Dates 2012-2019
Target audience
Artisanal fishing communities and freshwater aquaculture producers, including women
Financing Total US$37,818,183: IFAD, Government of Brazil and beneficiaries Project aims Reduce rural poverty through implementation of business plans in
agriculture, livestock, fisheries and aquaculture
Development challenges
The fisheries and aquaculture sector is an important one in Brazil and the country has ambitious plans to expand fish production to meet rapidly growing national demand and also for export. Brazil is endowed with rich freshwater resources, including rivers, estuaries, marshlands, dams and reservoirs across the country and a long coastline of over 8,400 km, which presents plenty of opportunity for fisheries and aquaculture. Artisanal fishing is especially important along the São Francisco River, the longest river that runs entirely in Brazilian territory. The river has abundant fish populations of more than 200 species in its flood-pulse
ecosystems9 with seasonally flooded lagoons. Fishing is a significant economic activity that is also culturally important. Historically, São Francisco River has sustained thousands of families in the watershed, who depend on the river’s resources for their livelihood. While fishing is typically a male profession, women are involved in some fishing practices, mostly in fish processing and marketing.
Fishers with boats and gear tend to have higher net incomes than those who work for intermediaries, and better organization and marketing arrangements are key to improving fishers’ incomes. However, there has been a decline in fish stocks and species diversity in the river, which calls for stronger fisheries management practices to ensure better resource conservation and livelihood security.
Although serious commercial aquaculture started relatively recently, production has increased rapidly since the mid-1990s, making Brazil the second biggest aquaculture producer among Latin American and Caribbean countries. The country reached production of 595,000 tons of fish from aquaculture in 2017 (FAO, 2019).
Aquaculture started with introduced species such as shrimp, tilapia and carp, but has gradually shifted to native species and now focuses more on the domestic market.
Freshwater fish aquaculture is the dominant form, comprising nearly 80 per cent of national aquaculture production, followed by shrimp. This high aquaculture growth has been achieved through increased investment in hatcheries, massive production of fingerlings of improved genetic quality, introduction of net cages, development of higher-quality fish feed, larger reservoirs and a ready market for value-added fisheries products in Brazil.
9 Ecosystems that are considered to be enriched by flooding.
Dom Távora area
Key barriers for small-scale producers to engage in fisheries and aquaculture include:
(i) Expensive fish feed: more efficient production and lower feed costs are needed to make aquaculture competitive.
(ii) Unsustainable fish stocks: declining fish catches in inland rivers due to a combination of factors, including increased use of small mesh nets, reduced water levels and increased salinity in the estuary, call for improved fisheries management to reduce the risks of overfishing.
(iii) Lack of organization of fishers and fish farmers: artisanal fishers are not organized in strong associations and tend to operate individually, while stronger fishers and fish farmers’ organizations can help to strengthen their negotiating power in order to obtain better prices, as well as making high-quality marketing infrastructure more affordable so post-harvest losses can be reduced.
Project response
Under Dom Távora, IFAD is supporting eight artisanal fishers and six aquaculture associations (representing 516 households or approximately 2,580 people) to develop sustainable livelihoods from artisanal fishing and aquaculture. Of these, 233 families belong to associations either entirely composed of women or in which women are the main actors and provide leadership. The project finances economically viable business plans, and aims to increase production from artisanal fishing and aquaculture of fish and shrimp, and improve market access through these associations. Artisanal fishing activities under the project take place in the lower reaches of the São Francisco River, while aquaculture is practised both in the river and in fish ponds.
With regard to fisheries, the project’s investment approach is to provide smallholders with the assets needed to improve fishing activity and increase fish production, and in some cases, equipment for fish preservation and processing.
Artisanal fishers, through their fishing associations, get new fishing boats, boat engines, fishing gear and navigational safety kits. So far, 101 boats and related equipment have been provided to over 200 fishing households, as each boat is shared by two households. Of these, 54 recipients were women.
Aquaculture interventions target over 185 households, each involved in the production of fish or shrimp either in net cages in the São Francisco River or in land-based fish ponds. The project’s approach is to provide aquaculture producers with cages or ponds and inputs (fingerlings and feed) to enable one cycle of production, with the expectation that farmers will reinvest afterwards in continuous profitable production cycles. Farmers also receive training and extension support to develop their skills in aquaculture production.
Results
• Increased incomes: artisanal fishers expect to catch and sell an average of about 100 kg of fish per month (compared with the average of 25-30 kg before the project) at a price of R$12 per kilogram, earning them R$1,200 per month.
The recurrent costs in artisanal fishing are low, mainly replacement/repair of nets and maintenance of boats, making this a highly profitable activity. The income from artisanal fishing is above the minimum government wage of R$900 per month.
• Improved household nutrition: On average, in each participating family, each month some 25 kg of fish caught through artisanal fishing is reserved for household consumption, therefore contributing to better nutrition in the project area. This contribution is significant in a region with limited options for access to animal proteins. Fish from aquaculture tends to be sold and the income used to buy other items – nutritional education can help to promote the use of part of the income to buy highly nutritious foods. Another possibility identified is that of raising several species (polyculture) in aquaculture tanks; the species with a lower market value are mainly used for domestic consumption while the higher-value species go to market. There is evidence that tank aquaculture already includes tilapia, tambaqui and other species, and this should be built upon in order to meet both market demand and household nutrition needs.
• More sustainable fishing practices: the project has been placing great emphasis on good fishing practices. For example, it only provides 50-mm mesh nets, while other fishers in the area commonly use smaller, 20-mm mesh nets, which are not sustainable as they catch the immature fish. Aquaculture-related business plans need to obtain a licence from the state environmental agency.
However, more comprehensive interventions such as fish stock management are still needed to further tackle this issue.
• Aquaculture activities employed by the project are technically sound – the net cages are properly constructed, and the fish are well stocked and growing healthily. From aquaculture, the yield is about 550 kg per cage per year, worth about R$3,805. The annual recurrent costs are estimated at about R$2,580 per cage, so it is clear that the activity is profitable and promises to be financially sustainable after the project closes. Each household has an average of three cages, which bring in a net profit of R$3,675 per household per year. These are relatively small cages and there is adequate space to expand the investments further without causing significant risk to the environment.
Other ways to increase income from aquaculture include reducing the cost of feeds, formulating feed from locally available ingredients, introducing more efficient feeding methods, stocking larger sizes of fingerlings and employing better marketing strategies. For pond aquaculture, smallholders can integrate fish production with other farm systems, including crops and small livestock.
• A learning experience for IFAD in a new sector in the country: the knowledge developed and the networks forged with government agencies, service providers and market linkages put IFAD in a sound position to further assist the smallholders in this sector in support of income, nutrition and environmental outcomes.
Cameroon: aquaculture offers youth a future
Key facts
Project name Aquaculture Entrepreneurship Promotion Project (PPEA)10
Dates 2016-2019
Target audience
300 small-scale farmers, and total indirect outreach of 1,500 farmers, of which 30 per cent are women and 50 per cent youth
Financing Total US$1 million IFAD grant
Development challenges
In Cameroon, national demand for fish is booming, but the sector is struggling to keep up. Annual production figures were around 154,000 tons in 2013 and Cameroon had to import over 190,000 tons (FAO, 2017). Artisanal fish production has remained virtually unchanged since 2008 in the absence of adequate technical training for artisanal fishers, sufficient technical equipment and qualified personnel, and access by fishers to financing to buy high-performance equipment. This requires private-sector involvement, the promotion of small-scale fish-farming enterprises, and the removal of institutional and technical constraints. Youth unemployment in Cameroon is of concern at 17.6 per cent in 2017.11 Similarly, nutrition remains a challenge, with only around a fifth of all children having an acceptable diet.12
10 PPEA: Projet de Promotion de l’Entreprenariat Aquacole.
11 Source: ILOSTAT Cameroon page. Accessed May 2019.
©IFAD/Soma Chakrabarti
